who are you suppose to believe?

I understand where you are coming from and I'd have to say that I would like to keep things as small as possible and definitely want to see individual liberties protected. BUT, I think we have to come to terms with the fact that we are a democracy and a BIG powerful country in an increasingly sophisticated and connected world. We can no longer function as a small rugged country with a frontier mentality. We have to take care of and protect ALLof our people. I think we also have an obligation to look at the rest of the world and adapt what works to our own system. Case in point: healthcare. Other countries have better access to medicine even though the cutting edge medecine is ours. We don't have the best infant mortality rate or a lot of the other things we should have because we are clinging to an unbending attitude from the past. I guess I should have prefaced this with the fact that I live in a suburb of Philadelphia and it is one of the most liberal parts of the country. It didn't used to be that way, Philly was liberal and the burbs were conservative but the demographics have changed here dramatically. Now you can't tell the difference between the city and the suburbs. It's all "Blue".

There is something about politicians that make them difficult to believe. I want to believe them. I really do want to believe them. It is just that despite my best efforts of wanting to believe them, no matter what, I am automatically skeptical of everything they say. No matter how many promises they make, it just seems like I am skeptical of them actually being true to their word and keeping up with what they would do. I guess this has to go with experience. I have seen politicians say one thing and then turn around and do something else one too many times. Plus those who try to do good might be having an uphill battle against those who have an agenda of their own to push. It can be extremely difficult to determine who we can trust and who is out to serve their own interests. Sadly, I doubt trust can only be gained in time and that can be something that most are unwilling to do.

Just one problem with giving someone else control over your life, you cannot trust someone else with your life. Everyone is fallible, including politicians.

Unfortunately, I can not offer an opposing view. Usually people that want bigger government, want hand outs and entitlements. I feel that if that is what they want, they really should head on over to a country that does this.

the problem is a perpetuated sense of etitlement on the part of a lot of the people. People who have fallen for the fallicy that government can and should provide everything for it's citizens. the more we demand from our government in the way of largess, the closer we move our selves to tyrany. "A government big enough to give you everything you wnat, is also big enough to take everything you have" ~Thomas Jefferson

I think that's the biggest point right there: A bigger government. No matter how you slice it, more entitlements and more government involvement in decisions means a whole lot more government. It constantly amazes me at how the more liberal side of the aisle, wanting government to claim a larger stake in America, paints those who don't as selfish capitalist pigs who want people to die in the streets and whatever else. Personally, I shake my head and wonder one extremely simple thing to myself. If a small government overreached by trillions and messed things up, what makes you think a large government is suddenly the answer to the prayers? It confuses the life out of me. I guess, maybe, some people buy into the propaganda that capitalism and indepenence are evil things and they must be controlled for the good of the collective. (Wonder why people shout "commie" and "socialist" at them!? lmao!) And while I don't necessarily disagree with the government having some regulatory duty, I feel to hand them the entire ship will do nothing but see that it sinks. I'm convinced people latch onto the big government thing because of the way it's presented to them. If they had the slightest idea of how incredibly inept the government is, they would be running far and fast. Instead, folks play the blame game for one side and pretend the other is far and away better. Not that I believe or trust or approve of the Republicans/conservatives in office, mind you. But I certainly do not have a single ounce of faith to put into any Dem/liberal/uberprogressive looking to expand their position while mitigating everyone else's. When a progressive tells it, it's always about the citizens needing to pitch in and help and not have an aversion to single-payer healthcare systems or open borders or a complete dismantling of anything resembling traditional values. But the biggest advocates for American overhaul DO NOT LIVE IN THE SAME AMERICA THAT THE REST OF US DO! They're on the hill, in the nice cars, not worried about big taxes (if they pay ANY at all), and making money hand over fist. And that's the biggest kicker of them all -- the one thing that should signal to everyone that they're all full of it: They wish to fatten their pockets while slimming ours. They want US to be commoners; they want to be kings and queens. I love to rant, but I can't keep going. I'll pull my hair out.

I'm with you...and I don't live in a conservative part of the country (it's probably evenly split). I don't trust politicians and I don't trust big government. I believe the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are currently being trampled on by the Executive and Legislative Branches of Government. I don't think things will change until this November, and then we can only hope we don't vote in another bunch of "politicians".